Ezekiel Elliott all but assured second rushing title with Gurley's white flag

The Los Angeles Rams (12-3) are still fighting for something, even if their Week 17 opponent is not. Thanks to a Week 14 loss to the Chicago Bears (11-4), the Rams have not yet secured a first-round playoff bye. Yet still, Sean McVay’s troops will go into their finale against the still-playing-hard San Francisco 49ers without a couple of their key players, including running back Todd Gurley.

Gurley has been hampered by a knee injury all year, and despite the bye possibly looming, will not be out on the field as the Rams look to secure a week of rest for the entire team. That concession all but hands the 2018 NFL rushing title to current leader (by a wide margin), Ezekiel Elliott.

AP Photo/Ron Jenkins

Just a few weeks ago, Elliott was locked in a tight race with both Gurley and Sunday’s opponent for the Dallas Cowboys, Saquon Barkley.

Now, two days before his final opportunity to sew things up, Elliott doesn’t have to take out his thread and needle at all.

Elliott’s 1,434 yards is already 183 ahead of the white-flag waving Gurley and 236 yards in front of the prohibitive offensive rookie of the year favorite, Barkley.

The rushing title will be the second of Elliott’s three-year career, leading the league with 1,631 yards as a rookie in 2016. Due to his six-game ban in 2017, Elliott couldn’t win that title, but he did once again own the league’s best yards-per-game average of 98.3.

Elliott currently has a 95.6 yards-per-game average in 2018, which currently leads the NFL.

Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

Even if Elliott plays and gains zero yards Sunday in New York, he will still finish with more yards per game than Gurley. Barkley would obviously have to take the outright title to best Elliott in this category.

The title will be the third for the Cowboys in the past five years, matching their run as NFC East division champions. DeMarco Murray won in 2014 with 1,835 yards.

Interestingly enough, Dallas will secure their third running back rushing title with four different offensive line coaches. In 2014, Bill Callahan ran the show, but it was Frank Pollack in 2016. This season, Paul Alexander and Marc Colombo have organized the Big Uglies paving the way for Elliott’s success. He’s done it this year without his All-Pro center Travis Frederick all season, and with left tackle Tyron Smith and right guard Zack Martin both being injured throughout the year and each missing games.

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